- Oh, look at that.
It's a cat.
It's a little picture of a cat.
- Ever since I first learned how to shoot,
the issue with gun violence around the nation
became clear.
Guns are not the problem, people are.
- A January 2013 AP poll found that 58% of Americans
wanted stricter gun control laws.
In January 2013, thousands of demonstrators,
many carrying pictures of victims of gun violence,
marched in Washington, D.C. to demand
gun control.
But, gun rights lobbyists say such laws would violate
Americans' constitutional right to bear arms.
And, they also argue that citizens need weaponry
for defense.
- How can we form a well-regulated militia
if we don't have the same arms
that the military has,
that our government has.
- So, who's right? What gives?
That's for you to decide.
But to help you make a better, informed decision,
here are the answers to several big
questions in the U.S. gun control debate.
- I mean, let's face it, this is America.
One of our freedoms is guns.
- [Voiceover] For them, this is what freedom sounds like.
(gunshot)
- The U.S. has a lot of guns.
So many, in fact, that there's nearly
1 firearm for every person who lives in this country.
(pings in the tune of The Star-Spangled Banner)
In 2009,
there were an estimated 310 million guns in the U.S.
This includes 114 million handguns,
110 million rifles, and 86 million shotguns.
(gunshot)
About 8 million firearms are manufactured
globally each year.
And 4.5 million are bought by people in the U.S.
- This little guy
is a Cobra Derringer .22 magnum.
(gunshot)
It's got a lot of kick.
- This might lead you to the mistaken impression
that everyone in this country is packing
serious heat.
However, the majority of Americans still are
unarmed.
In a January 2012 gallup poll, for example,
43% of Americans said they had a gun in their homes.
- [Voiceover] I am a child of liberty, okay?
I have all my rights, I have all my freedoms,
I have a child of this country.
So I feel very protective of whatever rights
we have.
- However,
a relatively small number of heavily armed people,
think about 20% of the population,
owns 65% of U.S. firepower.
- If you ask me where has been
the one area where I feel that
I've been most frustrated and most stymied,
it is the fact that the United State of America
is the one advanced nation on earth
in which we do not have sufficient
common sense, gun safety laws.
Even in the face of
repeated
mass killings.
- Is the U.S. gun homicide rate really that high?
In 2011, the U.S. had 11,101 homicides
committed with firearms.
And this amounted to about 70% of all homicides.
That's a rate of about 3.6 gun killings
per 100,000 people.
And whether that rate seems high to you
depends upon your perspective.
- After Sandy Hook happened,
the NRA said, and I quote,
"None of this would've happened
if the teachers had guns."
(laughter)
I think they're forgetting what school is like.
- Now, the U.S. isn't the country with
the most gun murders by any stretch
of the imagination.
That dubious prize goes to Honduras,
which has about 68.4 gun killings per
100,000 people.
That's 19 times the rate in the States.
And there are a bunch of other countries
that also have higher rates than we do here,
such as Mexico, Columbia, the Philippines,
and South Africa.
Compared to other industrialized democracies however,
the U.S. gun homicide rate is through the roof,
over the moon, down the street.
It's more than four times the rate in Italy.
Six times that of Canada.
And about 30 times the rate in Great Britain
or France.
- In Australia, we had the biggest massacre on earth,
the Australian government went,
"That's it!
No more guns!"
And we all went,
"yeah, all right then.
That seems fair enough."
(laughter)
Now, in America, you have the Sandy Hook massacre
where little, tiny children died,
and your government went,
"Maybe,
we'll get rid of the big guns?"
And 50% of you went,
"**** you, don't take my guns!"
- So with the crime rate in the U.S. be
lower if there were fewer guns available?
Again, it depends on which study you consult.
Burglary and assault rates are higher in Britain
than in the U.S.
But homicide rates are much lower.
(taps in rhythm)
- ♫ And I sure would like some
♫ sweet company
♫ And I'm leaving tomorrow
♫ what do you say? ♫
(gunshots)
- Are there countries with as many guns as the U.S.
But less crime?
The answer is absolutely not
because there's not another country in the world
with as many guns as the U.S.
- Well it's the Second Amendment,
it's not the 22nd Amendment.
It's like boom.
It's right after freedom of religion,
press, and speech.
It's like, all right, you have all those things
and you get guns.
- The U.S. comprises 5% of the world's population
but owns between 35 and 50% of the world's
civilian firearms.
That's a rate of ownership that's about
97 guns per 100 people.
It's the top in the world
by any estimate.
- But,
there's no connection there (laughter)
You'd be a fool and a communist to make one.
(laughter)
There's no connection between having a gun
and shooting someone with it
and not having a gun and not shooting someone.
(laughter)
Some of you are probably trying to make
a connection out there.
There is none. It's futile.
Cut it out.
- So let's reframe the question.
Are there countries with relatively high
gun ownership rates
and low crime rates?
The answer there is absolutely yes.
There's Finland, which has 69 guns per 100 people
and Switzerland,
which has 61 guns per 100 people.
Finland had just 14 gun homicides in 2010.
That's a rate of .26 per 100,000 people.
In Switzerland,
with 40 gun killings in 2010,
they had a slightly higher rate of .52
per 100,000.
But both of these countries
have stricter gun control laws on the books
than the U.S.
- You think it's because Americans are
more homicidal by nature?
Or do you think it's because those guys
have gun control laws?
- Hitler took the guns.
Stalin took the guns.
Mao took the guns.
Fidel Castro took the guns.
Hugo Chavez took the guns.
And I'm here to tell you,
1776 will commence again
if you try to take our firearms.
Doesn't matter how many lemmings
you get out there on the street,
begging for 'em to have their guns taken.
We will not relinquish them.
Do you understand?
- Has American public opinion shifted
on the gun control debate?
Well, it seems to go back and forth.
In the 1990s, gallup polling showed
that 78% of Americans favored tighter
gun control laws.
- I mean, a lot of people won't agree with me
but I don't care.
I think if you want to own a gun,
they should take you to a rage,
and they should see if you can pass the test.
If you can't pass the test,
well you have the right to bear arms,
go get a sword, you know?
- By the 2000's, support dipped to just 44%
with nearly as many Americans, 43%,
saying that the laws were already strict enough.
- Anybody that wants to disarm me,
can drop dead.
- A December 2012 gallup poll
found a sharp rebound in support
with a 58% favoring tougher gun statutes.
- Why do you think it's okay to sell a gun
to someone that you don't know
that's not been through a background check?
- Should we have background check for bathtubs
every time we take a bath?
- Now gallup data contains another important,
but often overlooked, point.
Though the number of Americans who want
stricter gun control has gone up,
then gone down,
most people over the past 20 years
have supported having laws that restrict firearms.
- You have to be
of a certain caliber to apply
for certain jobs in this country.
Or to have certain privileges,
you have to pass a test
to drive a car, you know?
A car could definitely be used as a weapon.
A gun is a weapon.
So I think that in terms of having
lax rules about getting them,
I've always been opposed to that.
- In this December 2012 poll,
only 6% of Americans favored looser
legal controls on guns.
However, that same 2012 poll found that a record
74% of people were opposed to a ban on handguns
for anyone but police or other authorized personnel.
- It's part of our Constitution.
You know, the right to bear arms is because
that's the last form of defense against tyranny.
Not to hunt.
It's to protect yourself from the police.
- Pollsters speculate that this could reflect
Americans' wish to keep the right of self-defense
in the wake of high profile, gun violence.
- So when there's the inevitable backlash
of the anti-gun law being as a result
of this incident, as it always is,
- Well, that's not gonna change anything
in the United States.
No, the United States is based on guns.
says you'll never have justice
on stolen land.
- So, I have to ask,
what do you guys think?
Should the U.S. change its gun laws?
And if so, how?
Let me know in the comments.
And check out our article
Ten Big Questions in the Gun Control Debate
on HowStuffWorks.com if you wanna learn more.
- ♫ When I'm gone, when I'm gone
♫ You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
♫ You're gonna miss me
♫ by my hair
♫ you're gonna miss me everywhere
♫ I know you're gonna miss me when I'm gone ♫
(gunshots)